A Lyons attorney and town councilman says he wants to take the 130th District seat to Albany — and he’s asking local Republicans to back him. George D. Dobbins told the Wayne County Republican Committee in a January letter that he’s seeking the party’s nomination for the New York State Assembly district now held by Republican Brian Manktelow.
Dobbins opened his pitch by thanking Manktelow “for his years of service,” adding, “Yours are big shoes to fill.”
The race already has another name in it. Former Marion Town Supervisor Summer Johnson recently announced her own bid for the seat. And as far as anyone knows right now, Manktelow still plans to run for re-election.
Dobbins said he was born and raised in Lyons, where his family has owned and operated Dobbins Drugs, Inc. since 1942.
He told committee members he went to law school at Georgetown University Law Center and now works as an attorney at Woods Oviatt Gilman LLP.
He also serves as a Lyons town councilman, a role he listed as running from 2024 to the present.
In his letter, Dobbins framed his campaign around “jobs, schools, and safety.”
He described himself as a conservative and said he wants Albany to deliver for “working-class people.”
On schools, he said communities should “refocus on basics like math, science, and reading,” and he called for more apprenticeships and introductions to the trades.
On public safety, he pointed to “bail and discovery reform in 2019” and said “more can be done” to support law enforcement and public safety.
He also wrote that his wife has worked as a prosecutor in Wayne County and that he wants to pursue legislation “that closes those gaps and protects our most vulnerable.”
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to [email protected].